Homecoming
by DontWakeMeUp
Summary: Takes place after "Gotta Catch Ya Later": On a starry night in the Viridian Forest, Gary and Misty find unlikely friends... in each other! ...But what do Ash and their other friends think of their new friendship? Egoshipping. GAML. More info in profile!
1. A Confidant

_This won't exactly be a typical story because the time intervals won't exactly be consistent… However, they aren't exactly the usual one-shots or drabbles either. This story takes place over the course of three years._

_This starts off on the day that Misty gets a phone call from her sisters in "Gotta Catch Ya Later!" Ash, Brock and Misty are currently staying in the Viridian City Pokemon Center. Over three years have passed since Ash started his journey, which would make Ash, Misty and Gary around thirteen, and Brock around eighteen._

_This is an egoshipping fic, which means that it will focus on the relationship between Gary and Misty. If you don't like this coupling, then please don't leave flames about it._

* * *

**DISCLAIMER: Unfortunately, Pokémon is neither owned nor created by me.**

* * *

Misty tossed and turned, desperately trying to find a comfortable position to sleep in without disturbing the sleeping egg-Pokémon next to her. It wasn't working, however; she just had way too many things on her mind.

The red-head grudgingly got out of bed and quietly tip-toed towards the door of the room that she was sharing with Brock and Ash. She opened it wide enough to get out and then silently shut it. She walked down the brightly lit hallway and made her way towards the front doors- perhaps a little fresh air would help.

"Excuse me, Miss?"

Startled, Misty turned around and came face to face with Nurse Joy.

"May I ask where you are going?" the nurse asked, a worried look donning her facial features. "It's rather late," she added, glancing over at the clock. It read 1:27 a.m.

"I couldn't sleep," the water-Pokémon trainer admitted. "I just thought I would get some fresh air."

"Okay, but please don't wander too far from the center. It's dark and-"

"I'll be fine, Nurse Joy." She lifted her jacket a bit and revealed a small flashlight attached to her belt loop, and an outline of a Pokéball in her pocket. "Thank you for worrying, though. I'll be back in a bit."

The nurse smiled and nodded.

Okay, so maybe walking the forest in the wee hours of the morning wasn't such a good idea. However, she had passed by a rather familiar tree a few minutes ago, and she knew that the riverbank was nearby- the same riverbank where she literally fished out Ash Ketchum. She figured it would be the perfect place to think. She walked forward for a few more minutes before she saw some moonlight streaking through some trees in front of her.

_A clearing!_ she thought happily, picking up her pace. The trees became more sporadic and soon enough, she could hear running water. She finally found herself by the bank, her surroundings being lit by the moon overhead.

Looking ahead, she noticed a lonely figure sitting by the edge of the water. Her curiosity getting the better of her, she slowly took a few steps toward the person.

"Gary?" she called.

Gary jumped when he heard someone say his name from behind. Turning his head, he came face to face with the red-headed trainer. Recognition let him relax his body.

"What're you doin' here, Red?" he asked.

Misty frowned. "You don't remember my name, do you?" She crossed her arms.

"Of course I do!" he said defensively. "It's… It's… Uh…" _Damn it._

"Misty," she finished, a little annoyed.

"Right, right! Misty. I knew that."

"Sure you did."

They continued their somewhat awkward eye contact for a few moments before he spoke again, "Are you gonna sit down or what?"

Misty rolled her eyes before taking a seat next to him. "So… what exactly is the Gary Oak doing sitting outside by himself in the middle of the forest?" she asked, looking at the water below.

"I asked you first," he retorted.

She glanced over at him quickly before looking back down. "I… I just needed a place to think. The Pokémon center isn't exactly the best place to do it…"

"Well, me too," he admitted.

"So, why are you here?" asked Misty. "In Viridian, I mean. I thought you were going straight home."

"I was, but then grandpa asked me to run a quick errand here, and I got delayed."

The two young teens sat in silence for a few minutes before Gary decided to speak again.

"What's bothering you?"

His voice snapped Misty out of her reverie. "Excuse me?" She tilted her head.

"You heard me. _What's bothering you_?" he repeated, a little impatient.

_Jeez. Aggravated, much?_ Regardless, she decided to answer. She really needed to vent her feelings to someone and Gary was sitting there, offering just that. "I… Well, y'know the Cerulean Gym, right?"

"Of course. I beat all three of those girls with only one of my Pokémon," he said, smug.

It took all that she had in her to not come back with a smart comment. "Well, those three girls are my sisters," she informed.

"Huh, really? That's interesting," he mused.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, no offense, Red, but your sisters suck at battling."

She wanted to hit him for insulting her sisters (even though she knew that it was true), but refrained from doing so when he continued speaking: "I'm surprised that they're the ones running the gym when you're clearly a better trainer than all of them combined."

Misty blinked. _Did he just say something nice to me? _She was obviously dumbfounded. After years of hearing him say nothing but insults to her and her friends, she never would have expected to be spoken to civilly by him, much less be complimented.

"How do you know how I battle?" she asked.

"I saw you training with Ashy-boy at the conference," he admitted, shrugging his shoulders.

She wanted to ask why she was watching them train, but decided against it. Wait, what were they talking about again?

"Anyway, what were you saying about the gym?"

_Oh, yeah!_ "Well, my sisters won some trip to go around the world, and now I have to go back to Cerulean to take it over again."

"Uh huh. Well, what's the problem? Now, you might be able to reverse that gym's reputation."

Misty sighed dejectedly. "I don't have a problem with that. It's just… well, I have to go by myself. I have to leave Ash and Brock."

Gary suddenly realized why she was so upset, and his eyes softened. After all, he had been traveling alone in Johto, and he knew how it felt to long for a companion. How it felt to come out victorious in a battle without anyone to share the feeling with.

"The worst part," Misty continued, her fists clenching at her sides, "is that they didn't even seem bothered by it, especially Ash. Brock is a gym leader too, and understands what I have to do, but Ash practically pushed me into leaving so early. It's like he doesn't even care that I'm leaving them… He won't even take my feelings into consideration." Tears were welling in her eyes and she blinked furiously to try to make them disappear. "We've traveled together for over three years, and he acts like it doesn't matter… Like none of it matters." She took a deep breath before continuing. "There's a reason I left Cerulean in the first place… Being a gym leader is fine and all, but I was always stuck at home because of it. And now… Now, I have to go back for who knows how long."

The boy looked at her sympathetically, but became alarmed when he saw her body shaking. _She's going to cry_…

Tentatively, he raised his arm and gently placed it on her shoulder.

Misty tensed for a moment at the sudden contact but visibly relaxed. She then looked over at her unlikely companion, who was smiling at her. It was subtle, but it was a smile nonetheless.

"Ash is just… dense," he stated bluntly, almost making her laugh. "I'm sure he doesn't take you for granted like you think, Misty. He's just like that, you had to have learned that by now."

Misty smiled. "Yeah, I know."

"You feel alone, I know. But even though your friends may not be with you physically, they'll always be there for you if you need them… Just like how you'll always be there for them."

To say that the redhead was shocked at the boy's words would be an understatement. Who would've thought that so much wisdom and kindness would be underneath his arrogant exterior?

She wiped her eyes with the sleeve of her jacket. "Thanks, Gary."

"No problem," he replied, retracting his hand and letting it rest on the grass next to him.

They sat in comfortable silence for a few minutes before Misty decided to speak.

"Why… Why are you _really _here?"

"I…" Why was he here? Why was it that after sitting in his spot for hours, he was still unable to come up with the right words to explain it.

"Is it… Is it about what happened at the conference?" she asked timidly.

Gary shook his head. He desperately tried to fish for the right words in his mind, but was coming up with nothing. "To be honest, I don't really know what's wrong with me…"

"Oh… well, maybe I can help you?"

He raised an eyebrow. "How?"

She shrugged. "Just answer a few questions for me, okay?"

"…Okay."

"Does it have to do with the conference _at all_?"

"Partly," he admitted, "but I've come to terms with it for the most part."

"Alright then." Misty thought for a moment before asking, "You said before that you wanted to become a Pokémon researcher, right?"

He nodded. "I've always found it interesting… I don't really want to battle anymore. It's not because of Ash, but I think losing to him really made me think of my priorities. When I lost, I thought about what I was going to do next. I mean, if I continued to be a trainer, I would basically keep doing what I was doing… And it was getting old, y'know? I just… don't like it anymore." He paused before continuing, "I was always just focused on winning and getting better. I never took the time to really think of _why_ I was doing this, or _why_ the league is how it is, or _why_ my Pokémon are the way they are. I want… I want to learn about them and _understand_ them. There's so much information that's just waiting to be discovered."

"You sound like your grandfather," she remarked.

He looked at her curiously.

"You have no idea how many times he's given us lectures when we get to Pallet," she said jokingly.

Gary smirked. "Well, I probably wouldn't be doing any of this if it weren't for him."

"Are you really just… _sick_ of training and battling?" she asked.

"I…" Again, he was trying to formulate the right way to express his feelings. "Don't get me wrong: it _is_ fulfilling to see all of my Pokémon grow and improve, and I do love them, but other than that… My heart wasn't really in the battles… well, not as much as they should have been. Battling is just expected of you when you decide to do anything with Pokémon at such a young age… But I only decided to do it on a whim a few weeks before I started my journey."

"Really?" Misty asked, clearly surprised. "Well, for something you did _on a whim_, you're really good at it."

"Thanks."

"And it's really clear that your Pokémon love you."

"I thank Arceus every day for that," he admitted. "Initially, I was only concerned in making a name for myself, but I found out some things of more importance." He looked down at the Pokéballs attached to his belt and smiled. Suddenly, realization sunk in. _My Pok_é_mon… What am I going to do with them now that battling won't be a regular activity? Battling is what they live for…_

Misty noticed him tense and freeze up and tried to snap him out of it. "Gary?" No answer. "Hey, Gary." Still no answer. She extended her arm and put her hand on his.

Gary almost jumped. He almost forgot that he wasn't alone.

"What's wrong, Gary?" Misty asked with worry on her face.

"My Pokémon… I… I never even really told them. I…" He sounded a little frantic. "I can't believe…"

"You're worried that they won't be happy not battling." It wasn't a question, she realized that _this_ was what he was battling with internally.

He looked at her and nodded.

"Look, Gary," she started, trying to find the best way to phrase what she wanted to say, "It's… It'll be difficult telling them, especially since you've battled with them for so long. And they obviously love it—I saw it in their eyes when you battled with Ash—but they aren't going to hate you or anything for it."

"How do you know that?"

"They love you, Gary. You've been there for them since Day One, and they've been there for you as well. Sure, it won't be easy to break the news to them, but they'll support your decision and help you in any way they can."

"You really think so?"

She nodded. "When I decided to leave the gym three years ago, I was afraid that my Pokémon wouldn't come with me. I mean, they've been at the gym for _years_: it's what they knew and were comfortable with. I didn't think they'd want to take the risk of leaving home with me, but they did. It wasn't easy for any of us, but we did it, and I think we all turned out pretty well." She gave him a reassuring smile.

He smiled back. "I… Thanks."

"Anytime. I—" Suddenly, Misty jumped up from her seat.

"What's the matter now, Red?"

"What time is it?"

Gary looked at his watch and his eyes widened. "A quarter to three," he announced.

Misty cursed under her breath and took hold of Gary's hand, forcing him up, before running into the forest.

"H-Hey! What's the rush?" he asked in between breaths.

"I told Nurse Joy that I would be right back," she replied, almost tripping over a tree root.

"When was that?"

"Over an hour ago."

After a few minutes, they found themselves in the lobby of the Pokémon center, muttering apologies in between breaths to the nurse.

"It's alright, kids. Just don't do it again," she said kindly. "Now, go get some rest." She bid goodnight and went to the backroom, leaving the two by themselves.

"When are you leaving, Gary?"

"Early tomorrow morning. I want to get to Pallet by evening."

"Oh, okay. I probably won't see you then, huh?"

He shook his head. "Probably not."

An awkward silence set in before she decided to speak again. "Well, then good luck on your journey."

"Thanks, Red. You too, okay?"

"Yeah."

Unexpectedly, he extended a hand towards her. Although she was a little caught off guard, she took his hand and shook it.

"Good night, Misty," he said with a small smile.

"Good night, Gary" she replied before they let go and went to their respective rooms.

* * *

**I'm currently in the process of revising all of the chapters before updating. This story was pretty much written, but my computer crashed last year, so I lost ALL of my files and really didn't feel like writing after that… Anyway, I've been on an egoshipping kick lately, so I've started writing again. I WILL finish this story. I don't know how long it will take, but it WILL happen. Don't worry. Haha.**

**Anyway, thanks for reading, and I promise to update this as regularly as possible now.**


	2. A Companion

**DISCLAIMER: Pokémon is not mine… Sadly. :/**

* * *

Misty walked along the dirt path that led towards the Viridian Forest. She had gotten her bike back from Nurse Joy, but leant it to Brock after he received news of an emergency back home.

"We're going home now, Togepi. We'll get to see all of our old friends," Misty said to the baby Pokémon in her arms.

"Toge-priiiii!" it exclaimed.

_I wish I could be as oblivious to things like you… _The red headed trainer stopped in her tracks and looked back towards the city and smiled. The trio had made numerous visits to the city, and it certainly had a lot of memories. She mused at the memory of the battle she had had just a few hours ago against those "Invincible Pokémon Brothers." Ash and Brock came and helped her blast them away of course, and she was very thankful that the end of their journey went out with a bang.

Misty was about to turn back around, but paused when she saw a familiar figure coming her way. Squinting her eyes, she could barely make out the face of none other than Gary Oak.

He was walking, eyes fixated to the ground, and obviously wrapped up in his thoughts. He was totally oblivious to the red-headed girl a mere twenty yards in front of him.

"Hi, Gary," Misty called out with a soft smile.

The brunette's head snapped up and was dumbfounded when he saw her. He certainly hadn't expected anyone else to be heading out of town at this hour. "Hey."

She furrowed her eyebrows. "I thought you left this morning."

"I did… but then grandpa needed me to do a few more things in Viridian… and I was just about to start heading back home again when I got another message from him asking me to do a few things for him in Cerulean," Gary explained. "I have to meet up with Bill at the Cape."

"Oh, I see," she seemed to hesitate before asking, "Well, um… need a traveling buddy?"

To say that Gary was caught off guard by the question would be an understatement. He had never had a traveling companion during his journeys (driving around in a convertible with cheerleaders didn't exactly count), nor had he ever been given the opportunity. "A-Are you sure?" he asked.

"Of course!" Misty replied with a radiant smile. "We'd love the company, wouldn't we, Togepi?"

"Priiiii! Priii!" The egg Pokémon flailed its arms.

"So what do you say?"

He suddenly smiled at her and nodded.

Misty didn't need to hear him say anything; she knew that he appreciated what she was doing. "Well, c'mon!" She hooked her arm around Gary's and led him towards the forest. "We're losing precious daylight here. I refuse to spend the night in the forest, so if we book it, we can find a place to stay in Celadon for the night."

"It's only noon," Gary noted.

"And it takes at least six hours to get to Celadon. I'd like to have time to get a meal and a decent night's sleep too, y'know."

"…You're really weird, Red," Gary remarked whilst being dragged.

She snapped her head towards him, her eyes aflame. "Excuse me?"

"What?" He put his hands up in defense. "I didn't say anything." However, his smirk didn't help his case.

Misty rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah. You're lucky I'm in a better mood today, Oak."

* * *

_**Later that evening…**_

"Hey, Misty!" Ash greeted when their images materialized on the video phone.

"Hi, Ash!" Misty replied.

"How and where are ya?"

"I'm doing okay. I'm at a hotel in Celadon."

Ash raised an eyebrow. "What? Don't want to camp in the middle of the forest by yourself?" he asked, jokingly.

"For your information, Ash, I am not by myself."

"Huh? Then who-"

"Hey, Ash, is that Misty?" asked Tracey from behind. He took peered over the aspiring master's shoulder and waved. "Hi, Misty!"

"Hi, Tracey!" Misty greeted warmly.

"Is that Misty I hear?" Misty heard Professor Oak ask from somewhere else in the room.

"Oh! Misty dear?" came Delia's voice. Within a few moments, Professor Oak and Delia Ketchum appeared on the screen. "How are you, Misty dear?" asked Delia.

"Just fine, Mrs. Ketchum," Misty replied.

"How is your trip going?" inquired Professor Oak.

"Oh, it's going along swimmingly. I should be in Cerulean tomorrow afternoon!"

"Yeah, if you don't keep getting scared by those bug Pokémon," came a voice from off screen. The voice snickered.

Misty turned around and yelled, "Hey! That's not funny!"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever."

"Hey, Mist, who is that?" asked Ash, taking note of her now red face.

"Oh, no one important." She waved it off.

"Excuse me?" the voice said, mildly offended. "I don't think that's a very good way to treat the person who so graciously took your offer to accompany you through the forest."

Misty fumed.

Suddenly, the current inhabitants of the Oak Laboratory saw a figure making its way towards the screen.

A male figure.

"Hey, grandpa, Mrs. Ketchum, Tracey," Gary greeted when his face appeared next to Misty. He seemed to scrutinize his rival for a moment before adding, "Ashy-boy." He smirked.

"GARY?" Ash exclaimed. "Misty, what are you doing with_ Gary_?"

"You make it sound like I'm a disease or something," Gary said, his face suddenly serious.

"Really, honey, you don't have to be so rude," Delia scolded her son.

"But mom-"

"No 'but's, mister!"

Ash instead resorted to glaring at his rival while Tracey took over the talking for him.

"Anyway, how did you two end up traveling together?" he asked.

"We ran into each other outside of Viridian," Gary said nonchalantly.

"Since we were going to the same place, I figured that we could travel together," Misty finished for him.

"Ah, well that seems perfectly logical," the Professor remarked. "Would it be alright if I talked to my grandson alone?" the Professor asked the others.

"No, not at all. It's late anyway," said Misty. "Good night, everyone!" She went into the bathroom to get ready for bed.

The others exchanged 'good night' to the younger Oak before leaving him with his Grandfather.

"What did you want to talk to me about, grandpa?" asked Gary.

"It isn't like you to do anything with anyone," the older Oak said. "Let alone a girl you barely know."

Gary shrugged. "She offered and I accepted. It would've been rude to say 'no.'"

"Uh huh… If you say so," the older man remarked.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"I mean, you two seem to have gotten pretty close in a short amount of time."

The young teen's face suddenly turned a few shades redder. "I-It's n-nothing…" he stammered.

The Professor sighed. "Okay, think what you want. Just remember that good friends are hard to come by. Goodnight, Gary!" he said with a smile.

Gary barely had enough time to utter a "good night" before his grandfather hung up.

"Toge, toge, toge-priiiii!"

The brunette looked down and saw the baby egg-Pokémon looking at him with interest. "Oh, hey there."

"Togepriiiii!" it cried, stretching its arms towards the male.

Gary picked it up and held it in the air, studying it closely. "You are a rather interesting Pokémon, Togepi."

"Toge?" it said, tilting its head.

"I wonder what kind of attacks you can use…"

"Prii?"

"Hey, maybe we can convince Misty to let you battle tomorrow or something?"

"Priii! Priii! Togepriiiii!" it exclaimed, freeing itself from Gary's grip and jumping onto his head.

"What are you—" He stopped when he realized that the baby Pokémon was falling asleep.

"Do you find the top of my head that comfortable?" he asked sarcastically, trying to look up.

He was only answered by the Pokémon's barely audible snoring.

Misty exited the bathroom wearing a t-shirt and cotton shorts. She giggled when she saw the sight in front of her: a sleeping Togepi comfortably nestled in the hair of a very confused and slightly irritated Gary.

"This isn't funny," Gary said, crossing his arms.

"Yes, it is," Misty replied.

"Whatever. What do I do with it?"

She shrugged. "Togepi looks to be very comfortable. I would really hate to distur—"

"There is no way that I'm sleeping with this," he pointed to Togepi, "on my head all night."

"Fine, fine." Misty carefully picked up the sleeping Pokémon and placed it on one of the pillows on the nearest bed.

"I wanted that bed!"

"Quit your whining, Oak. Sometimes you can be worse than Ash," she muttered as she got under the covers. "Good night."

Gary scowled and lay down on the other bed. "'Night," he mumbled.

* * *

"Well, it looks like we're here," Gary said, trying to make the situation a little less awkward. He and Misty were standing in front of the Cerulean Gym. After a good night's sleep, the two felt very energized and made it to Misty's hometown ahead of schedule.

"Yep…" Misty looked at the gym with a slight frown.

"You okay there, Red?" the boy asked when he noticed his companion's facial expression.

"Y-Yeah, I'm just-"

"VIOLET, DAISY! LIKE, MISTY'S HERE!" a feminine voice interrupted.

The two travelers looked up and saw the three Sensational Sisters running out of the gym to greet their baby sister.

"Toge-priiiii!" Togepi exclaimed when it saw the familiar faces.

"Like, Sis, it took you long enough!" Lily said.

"We've been like, waiting for you to get here already," Violet said exasperatedly.

"Oh, don't listen to them. Like, how was your trip? Hmm?" inquired Daisy.

"It was—" Misty started, but was then cut off again by Lily.

"Huh? Who are you?" Lily directed to Gary.

Daisy's eyes widened in surprise at Misty's new traveling companion. "Like, Misty, what happened to the other guys and that Pikachu?"

"What were their names again?" Violet asked out loud. "Al and Brian?"

"You mean Ash and Brock?" Misty corrected.

"Yeah, that's it!" Violet snapped her fingers. "Weren't you and Ash like, an item?"

A sly smile suddenly adorned Daisy's face. "Wait! Is this like, your new boyfriend?"

"Wha—?" Gary and Misty exclaimed, redfaced.

"You don't have to be so like, shy about it, Misty," said Lily.

"Yeah! Besides, he _is_ a cutie!"

"Cuter than the other kid, for sure."

"He's not my b-boyfriend, guys!" the youngest Waterflower said.

"Yeah, like I'd ever get caught dating a tomboy like her—" Gary started, but was interrupted by a whack on the head. "What the heck was that for, woman?"

"You know very well what that was for, Oak!" Misty yelled.

"Okay, so if you guys aren't like, dating, then who are you?" Violet asked, pointing at the boy.

"Guys, this is Gary Oak. He's a uh… an old friend of Ash's, and Professor Oak's grandson. We ran into each other in Viridian," the red-head explained. "He got a Cascade Badge here a few years ago."

The three older sisters seemed to think for a moment.

"Oh, yeah! You were the kid with the Squirtle!" exclaimed Lily.

"Who also couldn't stop bragging about his battling skills," Violet added, not so amused.

Gary chuckled nervously and scratched his head. "Heh, uh… Sorry 'bout that…"

"What's done is done. We've got like, important business, Misty," said Daisy.

"What is it?"

"Well, we have a bunch of trainers that have been waiting to battle and… well, we kinda want you to battle them."

Misty's jaw dropped. "_What?_ I _just_ got here!"

"Yeah, but we know you'll do fine," Daisy assured.

"Because, unlike us, you don't… Uh…" Violet started.

"Stink," Lily finished, slightly embarrassed.

"Besides, we still haven't like, finished packing and we can't waste anymore precious time!" Daisy said.

"When are you guys leaving?" asked Misty.

"Tomorrow morning!" the three older sisters exclaimed.

"So we'll be up in our rooms packing if you like, need us!" Lily informed before the three ran back inside the gym.

"Toge?" the baby Pokémon said, tilting its head in confusion.

Misty sighed. It seemed as if some things never change…

"Do you have to leave right this second, Gary?"

Gary looked at his companion and then shrugged. "I have a few hours to kill… Why?"

"Well, since my lovely sisters decided to ditch me already, and I don't have time to wait for someone else, would you mind refereeing the battles? Please?" Misty pleaded.

"…Fine."

* * *

"You all did an awesome job today," Misty said to her Pokémon. "Starmie, Horsea, I don't know how you were able to properly train with my sisters around, but you guys have definitely improved since the last time I've seen you guys. You too, Dewgong. You all deserve a break."

The Pokémon chorused before dispersing.

"Not bad, Red," said Gary, his arms folded across his chest.

"Not bad?" Misty repeated. "Not bad? I just won all of the battles!"

"_Barely_," the boy added with a smirk.

"Hey, I was going easy on them! They were all new trainers. I couldn't totally crush their spirits so early in the game, y'know?"

"Was it their spirits you didn't want to crush, or are you just saying that because you're referring to your own?"

Misty fumed. "Gary Oak, you—You—!" She jabbed her finger in his chest.

"Me, _what_?" Gary provoked, appearing totally unphased by her.

The red-head muttered a few curses under her breath. "Fine. Gary Oak, I challenge you to a battle!"

Gary was taken aback for a moment, but quickly regained his composure. "I thought the trainer was supposed to do the challenging?"

"Oh, shut up."

"Hey, is like, everything alright in here? We thought we heard yelling?" asked Daisy as she, Violet and Lily walked into the arena.

"Everything's just peachy," Misty replied, the vein in her head throbbing slightly.

"My, my. Having a little lover's quarrel?" Lily teased, snickering.

"Be quiet!" Misty snapped. "Listen, we're gonna have a battle and we need one of you to ref."

A few minutes later, Gary and Misty were standing at opposite ends of the water "battlefield"; each sporting very determined looks on their faces.

"This will be a battle between Misty of the Cerulean City Gym and Geri-"

"Gary_._" the boy corrected.

"Right, _Gary _Oak of Salad Town-"

"Pallet Town!" he corrected again.

"Oh, whatever!" Daisy waved him off. "Anyway, like, this battle will consist of Three Rounds. Trainers can each use two Pokémon, and the last trainer's Pokémon standing like, wins!" The oldest sister then turned to Gary. "As challenger, you have the opportunity to like, make the first move."

"Alright, I know the perfect Pokémon to start with," Gary said confidently before kissing his Pokéball-

"Oh, my gosh. You do that weird kissing thing, too!" Daisy interrupted, causing Gary to fall over in mid-action.

"Huh?" asked Misty and Gary at the same time.

"When you like, kiss the Pokéball before releasing it," Daisy clarified.

"We've always made fun of Misty for doing it," Violet said from the bleachers.

"Yeah, it looks like you two have more in common that we all like, originally thought!" Lily chirped.

"You interrupted our battle for this?" Misty practically shouted.

"Jeez, no need to get so snippy," Daisy said with a frown. "Oh, whatever. Just pick your Pokémon, Gary."

"Uh… okay…" Gary said, a little uneasy. "Go, Scizor!" he called out as he threw the Pokéball.

The red flying insect Pokémon appeared and stood on one of the floating mats in the pool, immediately taking a fighting stance. "Scizor!"

"Scizor, eh? Okay, go… Corsola!" Misty exclaimed.

The pink Pokémon jumped into the water from the sidelines and onto another floating mat. "Corsola! Corsola!"

"Okay, let the battle… begin!" Daisy announced.

"Scizor, quick attack!"

"Corsola, dodge it!"

Unfortunately, the part-rock-part-water Pokémon was unable to dodge the attack in time and was hit head on.

"Now, Scizor, use swift!" Gary commanded.

"Spike cannon!"

The two attacks met head on, causing a series of small explosions. Scizor tried to fly and dodge the explosions to prevent injury, but was not completely successful, getting knocked down onto a mat. Corsola, however, had dove underwater.

To the brown haired boy's relief, the red insect Pokémon stood back up. "Are you okay, Scizor?"

"Zor!" it said, nodding.

"Corsola, underwater tackle!"

"Corsola!" The Pokémon nodded before charging at its opponent.

"Counter it with metal claw!" Gary directed.

Corsola swiftly swam to where its opponent was standing before leaping out of the water to tackle it. However, its effort was proven futile when it was forcefully knocked back down in the water by Scizor's powerful steel attack.

"Looks like this'll be a quick battle," Gary remarked, seeing how much his opponent's creature was struggling to maintain consciousness.

"Not so fast," Misty interrupted. "Corsola, recover!"

The coral-like Pokémon began to channel its energy into restoring its health.

Gary grit his teeth. Scizor couldn't attack its opponent while underwater. "Scizor, when Corsola comes up, use steel wing!"

"Cor… sola!" Corsola said after it successfully recovered.

"Get up and use Ancient Power, Corsola!"

Said Pokémon jumped back onto the platform and released a silvery ball of light as Scizor charged at it.

The rock attack accurately hit the opponent, making it substantially weaker.

"Water gun, now!" Misty commanded.

"Scizor!" Gary yelled.

Still disoriented, Scizor was knocked down by Corsola's water gun. "Sci... zor..."

"Scizor is unable to battle; Corsola wins Round 1!"

"Good job, Scizor. Return." Gary recalled the insect Pokémon before taking out another Pokéball and kissing it, "Okay, Blastoise, finish this!"

"Blastoise!" The turtle Pokémon's deep voice echoed off the gym walls.

"Blastoise, use water gun!"

"Mirror coat, Corsola!"

The pink Pokémon fought the water gun attack for a few seconds, but was too tired to keep up the 'mirror.' The counter-attack failed and Corsola was sent flying to the other side of the room.

"Corsola is unable to battle; Blastoise wins Round 2!"

"Oh, no!" Misty exclaimed worriedly.

Lily ran over to the fallen Pokémon to carefully examine it. "I've got it, go ahead," the pink haired sister assured.

"Okay then, Staryu, I choose you!"

Staryu spun to the field. "Kyaaa!"

"Underwater tackle!" the two trainers yelled simultaneously.

The two water Pokémon jumped into the water and charged multiple times, meeting halfway at every turn.

"Dodge him and use Swift!" commanded Misty.

"Blastoise!" Gary called out.

The turtle Pokémon understood what its trainer was meaning, and withdrew into its shell, making the Swift attack practically ineffective due to Blastoise's tough shell.

"Now, rapid spin!" said Gary, and his Pokémon came in direct contact with his opponent's.

"Staryu, shake it off!"

"I don't think so," Gary remarked. "Hydro pump. Now!"

Blastoise came back out of its shell and jumped out of the water, firing the attack at the nearly unconscious Staryu with precision.

It was forcefully knocked into the water. It surfaced a few moments later, its core blinking.

"Staryu is unable to battle. Blastoise wins Round 3. The winner of the battle is Gary Oak!"

Misty jumped into the pool and swam over to her fallen Pokémon.

"Are you okay Staryu?" she asked as she did a quick scan of its body. "It's alright, you did your best."

Politoed dove in after Misty and helped her get the fallen Pokémon out of the pool for a more thorough check up.

"Good job, Red."

Misty looked up to see Gary extending a hand towards her. "I uh… thanks," she said, before taking his hand as he helped her out of the pool.

"…Well, I believe you now."

"Huh?"

"When you said you went easy on them… I'll admit that it wasn't easy beating you," the brunette said, scratching his head.

"Wow. Is this really coming from _the_ great Gary Oak?" Misty remarked, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, you aren't going to hear it again anytime soon, so enjoy it while you can," he said with a playful smirk.

Misty only shook her head.

* * *

_**A few hours later…**_

"Hey, Misty. I thought Gary left already," said Daisy. She leant against the doorframe of her little sister's room.

"He did," she replied, "Why?"

"Well, isn't that his Blastoise in the pool with the others?"

"Yeah, Gary left it here overnight. He figured he'd get better exercise in this pool than anywhere else in the near future. Besides, it seems to get along really well with the others."

"Uh huh. How long has he had this Blastoise?" Daisy asked.

"He first got it as a Squirtle a few years ago; the same day Ash got Pikachu."

"Oh, is it his starter?" the older sibling inquired.

"Yeah, why?"

"He just left his starter Pokémon here with you?"

"I don't get what the big deal is," Misty said, slightly annoyed.

Daisy looked at her sister in disbelief. "Whatever. You can be so like, dense at times, sis," she remarked before walking back to her room.

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?" Misty exclaimed, running after her the older sister.

* * *

_**The next evening…**_

Gary tiredly made his way through the empty lobby of the Cerulean Gym towards the pool. He stopped by the doorway when he saw Misty swimming laps with her Pokémon.

The piercing shriek of a whistle echoed off the gym walls and all eyes landed on a younger girl standing by the side of the pool. She wore an Electabuzz jersey and was holding a stopwatch in one hand and a whistle in the other. "Okay, awesome job, guys! You all beat your fastest recorded times!"

"Thanks guys! Now go get some much deserved rest," said Misty.

The Pokémon chorused their approval before playing.

Misty got out of the pool and took the towel that the younger girl was offering her. "Thanks for coming by today, Casey."

"No problem! I'm so glad that you called, Misty. I was sooo bored—"

"Blastoise, blast!" The turtle Pokémon got out of the water and made his way towards the gym entrance.

"Huh? Hey, it looks like you have company, Misty!" Casey did a quick once-over before adding, "he's kinda cute!"

Curious, Misty looked in the direction that Blastoise went and saw none other than Gary Oak.

"Hey, buddy, did you miss me?" Gary asked his starter Pokémon.

"Blastoise!" it replied, nodding.

"I'm guessing you had fun."

"Blast, blastoise!" It nodded again, with more enthusiasm.

"Hi, Gary!"

The boy looked up to see Misty making her way to him, followed by the other girl. "Hey, Misty."

"Gary, this is Casey," the red head said, gesturing to the girl behind her. "She's an old family friend and she offered to help me look after the gym while my sisters are away. Casey, this is Gary. I met him while I was traveling around with Ash."

"It's nice to meet you, Gary!" the younger girl greeted with a smile.

He nodded. "Likewise."

"Anyway," Casey started, looking at Misty, "I should get going. My mom wants me home by nine, and it's already a quarter of." She slowly started making her way towards the door.

"Okay, then. Be careful walking home, okay?"

"Will do! See ya, guys!" the girl called over her shoulder as she exited through the glass doors.

"So are you ready to go, Blastoise?" asked Gary.

The turtle Pokémon shook his head. "Blast. Blast, blastoise."

"Corsola, corsola!" said the pink Pokémon as it made its way over to the small group. It hopped onto Blastoise's shell. "Corsola!" it exclaimed, shaking its head.

"None of you want him to leave?"

The two nodded in affirmative.

"You're leaving tonight, Gary?" asked Misty.

"Uh… yeah? There's a ship that leaves from Vermillion tomorrow late afternoon. Why?"

"It's dark out! You can't possibly go venturing out in the pitch black forest—"

"Well, I can get a hotel—"

"Nonsense!" She covered his mouth with her hand. "You're staying here tonight. We have more than enough guest rooms."

"Mmf afmuh bah," came his muffled reply.

"No, no. You're staying here," Misty said stubbornly. "You can leave in the morning and have plenty of time to get to Vermillion."

The two Pokémon chorused upon hearing the news that Blastoise could stay another day before walking back to the pool.

Misty retracted her hand and instead used it to grab a hold of Gary's wrist. She then proceeded to lead him down the hall towards the living quarters of the gym. They climbed a staircase and entered a tastefully decorated living room where Togepi was peacefully napping on one of the chairs. They passed by a dining room and kitchen as they made their way towards the back of the building where they found themselves in a rather long hallway.

"You really didn't have to do any of this-" he started, but was interrupted by the red-head.

"Here's your room!" she announced, opening the third door to her right and turning on the lights.

Gary took a look at his surroundings. For a guest room, he was very impressed. There was a full-sized bed in the middle of the room and a small TV hanging on the wall in front of it. On one side of the bed was a desk, chair and a small shelf of books, and the other side were some decorative pictures and a door to what he presumed lead to a bathroom.

"So… you can freshen up here before dinner. You haven't eaten yet, have you?" Misty asked.

He shook his head.

"Okay, I'm going to take a shower and start cooking in about twenty. I'll see you in a bit!" she said, leaving the room and shutting the door.

The brunette placed his backpack on the desk before making his way to the bathroom to shower.

"Thanks for dinner," Gary said as he helped clear the table.

"No problem. I hope the food was okay… I haven't been able to practice in a while because Brock was usually the one that took care of the meals when we were traveling," Misty admitted.

"No, no. Everything was delicious," he assured. "I haven't had a home cooked meal in a while."

"Oh, well... That's good to hear," she said with a smile.

The two finished cleaning up before making their way back downstairs. After locking everything up, they bid "good night" to the Pokémon before going back upstairs.

The two missed the knowing glances exchanged between Blastoise and the others.

* * *

_**The next morning…**_

"Thanks again for… well, everything," Gary said sheepishly.

"It was no problem. Thanks for volunteering to cook breakfast; it was delicious!" Misty replied. "And don't forget about our rematch next time!"

He nodded. "I'll be looking forward to it," he said with a smirk.

"I'm going to win!"

He scoffed. "Yeah, right."

They shared a laugh.

"Have a safe trip, Gary. And let me know when you get to Pallet."

He raised an eyebrow. "What are you? My mother?"

Misty giggled. "I have had Togepi for a while. I guess it's just rubbed off on me these past few years."

"Don't worry," he said with a small smile. "I'll call." He turned around and walked towards the front doors.

"Gary!"

He stopped in his tracks and looked back at the gym leader.

"I uh… If you're ever in the area, don't hesitate to stop by and say 'hi,' okay?" Misty said.

This time, Gary genuinely smiled. "Thanks. I will," he replied before leaving.

* * *

**I'm sorry for the sub-par description of the Pokémon battle. _-_ I've never written one before, but I'm definitely going to try to improve for whenever they have their rematch.**

**Anyway, thanks for reading, and please leave a review!**


	3. A Storm

**Disclaimer: Hey you. Y'know about Pokémon? Well, it's not mine.**

* * *

_**5 Months Later…**_

"Yes, can I help yo—Hi, Gary!" Tracey greeted when he recognized the person standing on the porch of the Oak laboratory. "Hey there, Umbreon," he greeted to the dark Pokémon at Gary's side.

"Umbreon!" it greeted in return.

"Hiya, Tracey," Gary greeted with a friendly smile as he walked into the house. He set his backpack on the floor and surveyed his surroundings.

"Professor Oak, Gary's home!" the young watcher announced, closing the front door.

"Gary?" a voice sounded from down the hall. Professor Oak appeared a few moments later. "Gary, my boy, you're home!" the Professor exclaimed, bringing the teenager in for a hug.

"Hey, grandpa," Gary greeted. "How are you?"

"Oh, same old, same old. How are you?"

"Just fine."

"That's good. You're home early, aren't you?" the older Oak remarked. "We weren't expecting you to be back until tomorrow!"

"Well, I wanted to spend more time here with you before going up to Cerulean…"

"Oh, well that was very nice of you, Gary, but I don't think going to Cerulean will be necessary."

"Huh? Why not?" asked Gary, evidently confused.

"Gary!"

"Togepriiiii!"

Gary suddenly felt something latch onto his neck, and something smaller land on his head. He tried to regain his balance, but failed, causing them all to topple to the floor. Professor Oak and Tracey laughed at the scene.

"M—Misty? What are you doing here?" Gary asked the redhead who was now sitting on top of him.

"Toge, togepriiiii!" Togepi sang.

"Jeez. It's nice to see you too," she said sarcastically, putting her hands on her hips.

"I-I didn't mean—"

"I know, I know." She smiled. "I'm just teasing, relax."

"Why don't we go into the living room?" the Professor suggested. "I'll go get some refreshments."

"I'll help you," Tracey offered, following the older man into the kitchen.

"Uh… Misty?"

"Yeah?"

"Would you kindly get off of me now?" asked Gary.

"Oh! Sorry!" she apologized, blushing furiously. She quickly got up and extended a hand towards him, which he gratefully accepted.

"Toge, toge, togepriiiii!" Togepi cried, gently tugging on the hem of Gary's pants.

Misty giggled. "It looks like someone here missed you."

Gary took the baby Pokémon in its arms and then looked back at the redhead. "You mean _you _didn't?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

She lightly punched his arm. "Of course I did!"

"Jeez, woman. Why must you always resort to violence?"

Misty only rolled her eyes.

"So… What are you doing here anyway?" he asked her as they made their way towards the living room.

"Well, the two times you came back to Pallet from Hoenn, _you_ took the time out to visit me. I thought I'd come here to see you this time. I was sure that you wanted to spend as much time with your grandfather as possible before you leave for Sayda Island." She sat down on the loveseat opposite from the brunette. "Besides, Tracey, Mrs. Ketchum and your grandfather kept insisting that I visit. I only arrived last night."

"What about the gym?"

"My sisters got back a month ago, remember? They'll be fine for a week… _I hope_." She suddenly began to have second thoughts.

"Oh," Gary remarked. "Okay."

A few moments passed before Misty decided to speak: "…Y'know, you never shut up when we talk on the phone… You choose _now_, when we're both here in person, to be at a loss for words?"

Embarrassed, his face turned a few shades redder. "S-Sorry—"

"What is this? Is the great Gary Oak flustered?" Misty smirked.

He glared at her, but she only waved it off.

"You know that doesn't do anything to me anymore." She leaned forward, rest her elbows on her knees, and looked at him intently. "I'll accept your lame apology, though, and forgive you," she said with a playful smile.

Gary grumbled a 'thanks' before slumping back on the couch and sighing.

"Tired?"

"A little."

"Then, you should sleep."

"I'm alright," he assured, sending a small smile her way.

"Okay, here are the refreshments," Professor Oak announced as he and Tracey each walked in with a tray. The two set the trays down onto the coffee table before sitting down. "So how was Hoenn this time around, Gary?"

"Great. I managed to find some fossils in the mountains… I'm not exactly sure what they are, but hopefully I'll be able to figure it out when I get to the lab in Sayda," the brunette replied.

"Well, the Sayda Lab _is_ the best place for that kind of research," the Professor remarked.

"How so, Professor?" asked Tracey.

"They specialize in the study of ancient and pre-historic Pokémon. I'm sure they'll be more than happy to analyze the fossils that Gary found."

"Oh, I see. That's so cool!"

"When are you leaving, Gary?" asked Misty as she poured a cup of tea for each of them.

"This weekend." He gratefully took the tea that the Cerulean Gym leader offered him. "How're things here, grandpa?"

"Busy, busy, busy," the older Oak replied with a chuckle, "as always."

* * *

Following his stop in Cerulean City five months ago, Gary made his way back to Pallet Town. After spending some time at home, he decided on his next course of action: to travel to Hoenn.

Gary was restless and knew that he just needed to keep moving. He spent his time traveling throughout the unfamiliar country, studying the new pokémon there. He traveled back to Kanto twice during the five months in Hoenn to relay his findings to his grandfather in Pallet.

Gary had also kept his promise to Misty and visited her on both occasions. He had actually kept in constant contact with her during his travels, calling her whenever he was able to stay at a Pokémon Center.

"_I know how lonely it can get while traveling by yourself,"_ she had said after their first phone conversation. _"So feel free to call me whenever you'd like."_

He was very happy that he had someone to talk to (other than his Pokémon) after the long and tiring days he had been through. It was the next best thing to having a travel companion.

After first talking to Misty on the phone after his first visit to Cerulean, the two had found that conversation to come very easily to them. Perhaps it was their rather emotional encounter in the Viridian Forest that brought them together… or maybe it was the fact that they didn't know each other very well, thereby giving them liberty to give each other better first impressions… Well, whatever it was, neither of them wanted to complain. They were both very content to each have a new confidant.

The unlikely duo talked about everything from trivial things such as their favorite colors, food, etc. to their plans and goals for the future. Sure, their short tempers and very opinionated views often clashed, but it only made for better discussion. Besides, they both found it entertaining to poke fun at the other.

However, Gary found it odd to find someone so easy to strike up a conversation with. He had never had a conversation longer than ten minutes; not even with his grandfather! So why was it that he could talk to the redhaired gym leader for hours at a time? He had never kept in touch with anyone else in the frequency that he did with her… but what was it exactly that made her different from everyone else? Why did he feel so comfortable opening up to a girl whom he had really only known for the last five months?

Regardless, they had grown remarkably close during the course of the last five months. So close that they truly considered each other friends.

That's right: _friends_.

Who would've thought that the two of them would become friends? Let alone engage in a civil conversation? After all, prior to their run-in in the Viridian Forest, the two had only exchanged a few words with each other (those words usually being insults of some sort).

But they had both agreed to put the past behind them and focus on the present.

Now the only question was: what did the future have in store for them?

* * *

"Whoa. Is this the Gyarados you told me about?" asked Gary, looking at the blue pokémon at the edge of the lake. He recalled the story that Misty told him a few weeks ago about the incident with the "Invincible Brothers."

"Yep!" Misty chirped.

To say that the large dragon Pokémon was intimidating would be an understatement. Gary examined the Pokémon, noting that compared to the average Gyarados, its size was a little larger and the scales on its skin were much shinier. It was obvious that she took great care of it.

"He's a sweetheart, really," Misty assured, sensing Gary's uneasiness. "Aren't you, Gyarados?"

The sea-dragon nodded its head.

Gary took a step closer and found himself face to face with the huge water Pokémon. Before he could do anything, the huge water Pokémon nuzzled against him.

"See? It likes you!" Misty said happily.

"Toge, toge, togepriiiii!" Togepi agreed. The baby Pokémon was currently in the arms of its 'mother.'

"I've always wanted to catch one of these," Gary remarked. "I got a few Magikarp, but I never had enough time to train any of them to evolve into a Gyarados. Lucky you to just stumble upon it, huh?" He chuckled.

Misty laughed too. "Yeah, but to be honest, I really didn't like them at first. Next to bug Pokémon, they were my biggest fear."

"Oh? Why?"

"Childhood incident," she said, getting rather shy. "No big deal. The important thing is that Gyarados here helped me get over my fear. Isn't that right, Gyarados?"

The blue Pokémon made a sound of agreement.

* * *

"…and so Umbreon used Secret Power and was even able to put it to sleep because of our location. Then she finished it off with Dream Eater."

"Wow. Sounds exciting!" Misty exclaimed. "Very impressive, Umbreon!"

"Togepriiiii!"

"Umbreon!" the dark Pokémon said in agreement.

The four were currently sitting, or rather laying down, on a large, grassy hill that overlooked all of the Oak property.

Misty sighed blissfully. "I wish I could've continued journeying…"

"You can _now_, can't you?" asked Gary. "I mean, your sisters are back and—" He stopped when he saw her shake her head.

"Violet and Lily have absolutely no interest in battling anymore," she explained. "Daisy knows how to handle the gym and helps me out, but I know that she doesn't really like it that much either."

"Oh… Well, at least you reversed your gym's reputation, right?" It was true. In the last five months, the Cerulean Gym had only given out badges to a dozen first-timers.

Misty smiled. "Right." She really was glad that she was able to fix the gym up (with help from her friends like Tracey, of course). Now, it was back to being a real Pokémon gym. Sure, they still held underwater ballets and such, but battling was the top priority again.

A comfortable silenced passed as the two watched the stars start to appear in the sky.

"The sky here never ceases to amaze me," Misty remarked.

"It _is_ something, isn't it? One of the plus sides to living in the middle of nowhere," he said, making her laugh.

Stargazing was one of Gary's favorite pastimes. After his parents and sister died, he would occasionally leave the Oak estate, after his grandfather had gone to bed, and sit atop this very hill to think until the early hours in the morning.

"It's getting late," he announced, standing up. "We should get back."

"You're right," she replied, following suit. She cradled the drowsy Togepi in her arms as they all made their way back to the lab.

* * *

"Gary, Ash called a few minutes ago and wanted to speak to you," the Professor said as the two teens entered the kitchen. He was sitting at the kitchen counter, reading the newspaper, while Tracey was rummaging through the refrigerator and cabinets for a late snack. "The number should still be in the phone."

"Thanks," the brunette uttered before going to the living room. Sitting down in front of the phone, he looked the call history and selected the latest received call.

"Hello?" a voice greeted tentatively.

"Hi, Ash. grandpa told me that you called."

Their images materialized on the screen.

"Hey, Gary!" Ash said with more enthusiasm.

"What's up?" asked the young researcher.

"I just wanted to say 'hi.' Professor Oak told me that you're going to Sayda Island."

"Yeah, this weekend."

"Well, I highly doubt that I'll see you sometime before that, so I just wanted to call to wish you luck. I know you'll do fine in whatever you want to do."

"Thanks, Ash. That means a lot."

"No problem."

"So… how are things with you?"

"Great! I actually got my third badge today! It was a piece of cake."

"That's great," Gary said, genuinely happy for his rival-turned-friend.

"Mhm. Mind if you let Tracey know for me?"

"Yeah, sure."

"Thanks. I've been trying to get in contact with Misty too, but her sisters said that she went away for a few days… It's so difficult to keep in touch with everyone," Ash said, embarrassed.

"Oh, Misty's here, actually," Gary informed.

"Huh? She's there with you?" Ash asked, evidently confused.

"Yeah. I'll go get her."

"Uh… Okay—" Ash said, but Gary was already gone.

Less than a minute later, Misty appeared in front of the phone.

"Hi, Ash!" she greeted.

"Uh… Hey, Misty. Say, what're you doing at Professor Oak's lab?"

"Well, I haven't been here in a while so I figured that I'd come down for a visit." She shrugged. "And I wanted to see Gary off before he leaves again."

"Ah…"

"So, how are you, Ash?"

Ash's lips suddenly curved into a smile. "I got my third badge today!"

"That's great, Ash!"

"Yep. One step closer to the Ever Grande Conference!"

Misty shook her head. "Still the same old Ash, I see."

"Yep!" His expression suddenly became serious. "Um… Can I ask you something?

"Of course. What is it?"

"Are you and Gary like… friends now, or something?"

"Yeah, actually… believe it or not."

"I see." The aspiring pokémon master knew that his two friends had been spending time together every now and then, but he never realized how much. "Are you—" he was about to speak again, but was interrupted by a female voice.

"Ash, it's late! We have to get a move on if we want to get to the next city!"

"Alright, alright. I'll be right there, May!" The raven-haired teen looked back at the screen. "I guess that's my cue. I'll talk to you guys soon."

"Okay. Travel safe!"

* * *

Gary startled when an extremely loud clap of thunder sounded. Rubbing his eyes, he looked out the window and saw that it was storming outside. He looked at the clock.

3:14 A.M.

Great. He only had 3 hours of sleep so far. There was no way that he could go back to dreamland with so much noise around him. He startled when he heard his door open.

"Gary, are you up?" Misty quietly asked, peeping her head through the door.

"Toge, togepriii…" came her Pokémon's small cry.

"Yeah," he replied before reaching over to turn on the small lamp next to his bed, the soft light immediately brightening the room. He realized that the baby Pokémon in Misty's arms was visibly shaking.

Misty shut the door behind her and made her way over to his bed. She sprinted when another clap of thunder sounded and buried herself and Togepi under the covers.

"You really hate storms, don't you?" Gary said, obviously amused. He leaned back against the headboard.

"Always have," she admitted.

"How'd you manage when you were traveling?"

"Ash and Pikachu's snoring would usually drown out the sounds," she said, desperately trying not to laugh. However, her efforts were proven futile when Gary suddenly burst out laughing.

"That's Ashy-boy for ya."

Their laughter seemed to put Togepi at ease and it stopped shaking. Yawning, it snuggled closer to Misty and began drifting back to sleep.

"Here," Gary said, taking one of the pillows from behind him and putting it at the foot of the bed.

Misty carefully lay the Pokémon down and then moved to sit next to the brunette. She flinched when they heard another loud thunder clap, but relaxed when she felt her companion's arm come around her shoulders.

"You freak out too much, Red."

"Oh, shush." A few moments passed before she spoke again, "So are you excited?"

He raised an eyebrow. "For what?"

"Sayda," she stated. "What else?"

"Oh!" He chuckled nervously. "I… I guess I am. I mean… I don't really know. I know that I want to do research, but I'm not sure which field I want to study exactly… I doubt I'll stay there for too long, though."

"Why is that?"

"I don't know… I just feel like I have to keep moving. I don't want to stay in one place for too long."

Misty looked at him. "You don't want to stay in one place?" she repeated. "Why wouldn't you want that? I mean… Obviously we're too young to 'settle down' and whatever, but what about when we get older? Are you really going to be traveling then?"

He turned towards her and their eyes met. "I'm really not too sure of anything right now, Misty," he admitted. "All I know is that I'll be moving until I find… well, whatever it is I'm looking for. I know I want to research, but I still want to find that place that I can be comfortable in and call my own, y'know?"

"Wow."

"What?"

"Who knew that Gary Oak could be such a sap?"

"Hey!"

Misty laughed, but her facial expression soon softened. "Hey, lighten up! I totally get what you mean. I just didn't expect you to be like that about it."

"What about you?" he asked after a few moments of silence.

"What about me?"

"You don't expect yourself to still be a gym leader ten, twenty, thirty years from now, do you?" Gary asked.

"Of course not!" she replied, almost defensively. "But… Well, it's something for me to do until I figure everything out: after all, I still want to become the best water pokémon trainer in the world! As of now, though, I'm happy, and my Pokémon are happy… so I think I'm doing alright for now."

He smiled. "Yeah."

* * *

Gary woke up (again) to a very strange weight on his body. Opening his eyes, he saw that Togepi was jumping on his stomach.

"Toge, toge, toge, togepriiiiii!" the egg-Pokémon exclaimed when it noticed that he had (finally) woken up.

"What now, Togepi? You couldn't let me sleep in a few more hours?" he groaned.

"Togepriiiii!" it replied, oblivious to the brunette's drowsiness.

Gary looked over at his clock and saw that it was only 8:13 A.M. Knowing that he definitely wouldn't be able to get back to sleep now, he grudgingly got out of bed and went to his bathroom to brush his teeth—

Wait a second.

Why was Togepi here in the first place?

Suddenly, the events of the previous night came back to him.

Thunder… lightning… then Misty coming into his room scared… Togepi falling asleep… talking… Misty falling asleep… in his arms.

His cheeks reddened when he recalled the last detail. He finished freshening up and picked up Togepi before leaving his room. The smell of pancakes immediately filled his senses as he descended the stairs, as well as some chatter between Misty and Tracey. Entering the kitchen, he saw Misty standing behind the stove while Tracey was setting the table.

"You should've seen this guy!" Misty said. "He was _at least_ three times your size and with tattoos and whatnot covering his arms. To top it all off, he came to the gym with a bunch of his friends: all on motorcycles."

Tracey whistled. "Sounds tough."

"Uh huh. So obviously, he came to challenge me. Guess what kind of Pokémon he had."

"I dunno." Tracey pondered for a moment before guessing: "A Machamp? Feraligatr? Houndoom?"

"A jigglypuff."

"No way!" Tracey chuckled. "Did you beat him?"

"Barely. I used Politoed, but oh, man, that Jigglypuff had one hell of a double-slap."

Tracey laughed again. "Well, I guess you _really_ shouldn't judge someone based on their appearances—Oh! Good morning, Gary," he greeted, when he noticed the sleeping brunette by the doorway.

"Morning, Tracey. Morning, Misty."

"Togepriiiii!" Togepi chirped when it smelled the food cooking.

"Morning," Misty greeted with a smile.

"Is grandpa up yet?"

Tracey nodded. "He's in his lab and told us to call him when breakfast was ready—"

"Which should be about…" Using a spatula, Misty lifted the last pancake off of the frying pan and tossed it onto an already massive stack on the counter. "Now," she said with a grin.

"I'll go get him, then," said Tracey, leaving the room after he finished setting the table.

Gary helped Misty bring all of the food to the table before the two sat down.

"Do you want some tea?" she asked him whilst pouring herself a cup. "You look like you need something to wake you up."

"Well, yeah. No thanks to your little ball of sunshine over here," he retorted, gesturing to Togepi, who was happily eating its breakfast.

The redhead only rolled her eyes in response. She poured him a cup of tea before speaking: "Thanks for last night. I uh, I'm sorry that we kept you up."

"It's fine," he assured, "really. Don't worry about it." His tone changed suddenly, "I'm just glad that my good looks come naturally, so I really don't need that much sleep," he said, smirking.

She snorted. "Oh? Well, I beg to differ—"

"My, everything looks and smells absolutely delicious," Professor Oak remarked when he and the young Pokémon watcher walked into the room. "I'm sure it tastes delicious as well." The two sat down and all of them began eating and making small talk.

It was when they were clearing the table that the phone rang.

"I'll get it," Misty said going to the living room.

"So kids, what are your plans for toda—" The Professor was cut off by Misty's yelling from the other room.

"_WHAT?_ NO!"

Alarmed, the three males ran into the kitchen to see what was wrong.

"WHAT ARE YOU GUYS, CRAZY? YOU CAN'T JUST GIVE BADGES AWAY!" Misty yelled at the image of her sister, Daisy.

"_But like, all of them have been waiting—"_

"Just tell them to wait a little longer, then!"

"_Well, what if we like, give them the badges and tell them to come back later?"_

"No, no, no, Daisy! I'll be home by tonight, okay? Just tell them all to sit tight. Now, good bye!" she yelled, slamming the receiver back down.

"Woah, a little harsh there, don't ya think?" Tracey remarked.

"You wouldn't understand," Misty said, sighing. "You don't have _them_ as your sisters."

"Uh… Misty, if you don't mind my asking, how were your sisters able to handle the gym before you returned?" the Professor asked.

"They didn't," came her reply. "After Gary, Ash and the other two trainers from Pallet beat them, they turned their focus to underwater ballet."

"So… you're leaving…" Gary left the sentence hanging.

Misty fumed. "I can't believe them! I've only been here two days and already they're being such—"

"Don't say anything you might regret," Tracey warned, interrupting her.

Misty sighed. "You're right…" She gasped and stood up. "Now I have to pack, get a ferry ticket to Vermillion, reserve a seat on the train and—"

"Hey, Mist, why don't Tracey and I arrange all of that while you pack? Then we can all go out and do something before you leave," Gary suggested.

"Really?" The two boys nodded. "Thanks so much!" She ran upstairs to pack up her things.

* * *

Three hours later, the group found themselves standing on the docks outside of Pallet Town.

"Well, have fun in Sayda, Gary," Misty said. "Take care, okay?"

"I will," Gary replied.

She sighed. "Yeah, well… What can you do?

They shared a smile for a brief moment before she suddenly glared at him.

"Now, just because you're going to be busier than before doesn't mean that I won't be expecting a phone call every now and then!"

"Don't worry, Red. I'll call," he said, laughing. "_And_ I'll make sure to call you once I get to Sayda," he added before she could say anything else.

She smiled again. "Good." She then turned her attention to the other two males. "It was great seeing you again, Tracey."

Tracey nodded in agreement. "I'll make sure to come up and visit when I have some free time."

"And I'll make sure to give him some free time," the Professor said, jokingly. "Misty, you're welcome back whenever you'd like, remember that."

Misty nodded. "Thank you, Professor."

Their goodbyes were interrupted by an announcement for passengers to board the ferry.

"Well, it looks like we have to go, don't we, Togepi?"

"Togepriiiii!"

"Bye, Misty!"

"Goodbye, Misty!"

"See ya, Red."

"Bye everyone!" Misty called out as she boarded the ferry.

* * *

**Chapter 3 done. Wooooo! **


	4. A Move

_**Disclaimer: If Pokémon were mine, egoshipping would be canon by now.**_

_**I just want to say "thank you" to all of my readers out there. I really appreciate the reviews and pm's. I'm glad that you're all enjoying the story.**_

* * *

_**6 months later…**_

Misty flopped down on the couch and turned on the television mounted on the wall in front of her. After having found a seemingly decent show to keep on, she picked up the pint of pistachio ice cream on the coffee table and immediately began to consume the sweet substance, ravenously scooping the concoction into her mouth with a spoon. If her sisters had seen her at that very moment, they would've muttered something or other about her being unladylike. But tonight, her sisters weren't home, so she really didn't care.

All she had wanted to do all day was to lounge in the living room while eating her favorite ice cream… and that's exactly what she was doing. She wasn't going to let anything get in her way.

It had been an exceptionally busy day for the red-headed gym leader. In addition to the dozen or so trainers that had arrived and asked for gym battles, she had to clean the pool, wash the floors, feed the pokémon and make sure that they had exercised. Completing these tasks while being buried in paperwork from the Pokémon League didn't exactly make for an enjoyable day. It certainly didn't make for an easy one either.

By the time she was finished all of her work, it was past eight-o'clock. It had taken her almost fourteen hours to finish all of her work. Regardless, she was relieved that she would finally be able to shower and relax.

She looked over at Togepi, who was sitting on the coffee table nibbling on some cookies.

"You're so lucky that you don't have a job," she said.

"Toge, toge!" the baby Pokémon exclaimed before stuffing another cookie into its mouth and munching happily.

Misty smiled at the innocent creature before taking one of the magazines in the pile next to it. She was desperate to find some sort of entertainment (the reality show that was playing on the television just wasn't doing it for her). She flipped through it carelessly before a rather large and colorful headline caught her eye.

Just as she was starting to become immersed in the article, the phone rang.

_Ring, ring, ring! Ring, ring, ring! Phone call! Phone call!_

Misty decided to ignore it, and smiled in satisfaction when it stopped ringing. She ate another spoonful of her ice cream before turning back to the magazine-

_Ring, ring, ring! Ring, ring, ring! Phone call! Phone call!_

"Ugh! _Why_?" Misty asked out loud.

Togepi only chirped in response, oblivious to his master's frustration.

She sighed and grudgingly walked across the room to the phone (but not before taking her ice cream with her; there was _no_ way that she was going to let it go to waste). Sitting down, she hastily picked up the receiver and answered, "What do you want?"

"Well, hello to you too," a male voice replied sarcastically.

Misty's cheeks reddened a bit after Gary's image materialized on the screen. He did not look the least bit entertained by the situation.

"_Oh, I'm so sorry, Gary, but I'm terribly busy at the moment. I'll call you back in an hour, I __**promise**__!" _Gary recited, his voice a little higher pitched than normal. He rolled his eyes before looking at her pointedly. "Does that sound familiar?" he asked.

Misty's face turned an even darker shade of red. "S-Sorry!" she said sheepishly.

"It's been six hours; y'know that, right?"

"Yeah, I know. I'm sorry, but I was so busy… I just… forgot," she said, bringing her hands together, asking for forgiveness.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever." He sighed and his face softened. "So what's bothering you?"

"What do you mean?" she asked, taking another spoonful of ice cream into her mouth.

"You don't normally answer the phone that rudely, do you?" he said, raising an eyebrow. "Then again, it _**is**_ _you_ that we're talking about, so maybe it _is_ normal—"

"Excuse me?" Her eyes narrowed.

"Kidding, kidding." He leaned forward, supporting his head with his arm. "Seriously though, Red. What's wrong?"

"Nothing. I'm just tired… I've just had a ton of things to do these past few days. My sisters left for another trip, and so I'm by myself. I was up since seven this morning and I just finished around half an hour ago," she explained.

"Oh. Well, if you want to sleep or whatever—"

"No, no. It's okay. I haven't talked to you in a while anyway," she said, recalling that their last phone conversation was three days ago.

"You sur—"

"Yes, I'm sure," she interrupted. "What's up?"

"…I have some news."

"Okay, spill."

"Y'know how I've been kind of… well, wanting to get off of this island? I mean, it's great and all but—"

"You want to travel again," she said before taking another bite of her ice cream.

"Yeah. And—"

"You think you've worked with prehistoric Pokémon long enough," she said while pointing her spoon at him.

"…Did I mention all of this to you already?" he asked, dumbfounded.

"Once… or twice," she admitted. "So what's the news?"

"Okay, see: for the past couple of weeks, my grandpa has been working on a project with Professor Rowan from Sinnoh. Do you know about him?"

She pondered for a moment before replying, "I've heard of his name before."

"He specializes in Pokémon evolution."

"Ah, I think there was an article about him in the paper last week."

"Anyway, he mentioned to Grandpa that he was going to start a new long-term project on the legendary Pokémon in Sinnoh, and that he was looking for some new recruits for his team. Grandpa mentioned me, and… now I'm going to Sinnoh," he said with a small smile. "It's more hands on, so I'll be traveling more instead of staying cooped up in a lab."

"Really? That's great, Gary! I'm really happy for you."

"Thanks."

"Legendaries…" Misty thought out loud. "That sounds so interesting. You're so lucky that you have the chance to study them."

"I guess, but you've definitely seen a lot more than I have," he said, remembering the numerous stories that she had told him. "Seeing Ho-oh, Lugia, Celebi and all of those others? That's pretty impressive."

"Yeah, but it wasn't like we saw them all for fun or anything. My friends and I just have a knack for getting ourselves into trouble," she said, chuckling.

"Well, I don't think anyone can deny that."

Misty smiled wistfully.

"You miss it, don't you?" he asked softly.

"What? Getting into trouble?"

"You know what I mean."

She smiled guiltily. "…A little," she admitted.

Gary looked at her disbelievingly.

"Okay, a lot…," Misty corrected, "but it's fine."

"Really?"

She nodded. "Really. I'm sure I'll have time to travel again later." She paused before speaking again. "So when are you leaving?"

"I'm leaving here on the twentieth of next month, so… seven weeks. Then I'm going to Pallet for a week before visiting you in Cerulean, and then I'm catching a ferry to Sinnoh from there."

"How long are you staying here, then?"

He shrugged. "I dunno… Until you kick me out, I guess," he said with a grin.

She looked at him fondly. "It's been a while, hasn't it?"

"Yeah…" Gary remembered their two reunions since he went to work at Sayda Island. The most recent one was two months ago, his grandfather and Tracey paid another visit to the young researcher for his 14th birthday (regardless of the previous Aerodactyl-related fiasco). They had even invited Misty to come along. He wasn't expecting to see her, but it was certainly a pleasant surprise.

A month prior to that was Misty's own birthday, and he had shown up at the Cerulean gym with a togepi-shaped cake.

"Well, you know what's up with me. Anything exciting happen to you these past few days?"

Misty's face suddenly flushed red when a certain event from yesterday replayed in her mind.

"Aha! So something _did _happen!" Gary said with a grin. "Do tell."

She laughed weakly. "Haha… Um… Where do I begin?" She pondered for a moment before continuing, "Uh… Daisy, Tracey, Casey and I were hanging out by the pool when a Pelipper flew in through the window with a letter addressed to me. It was from some guy named 'Georgio' and he wanted me to meet him at the lighthouse."

He blinked. "Huh? What for?"

"I didn't know at the time… but Casey volunteered to go with me to find out, and so we did, and then we found out that all this Georgio kid wanted was to uh, ask me out on a date."

"A date?" he repeated. "He went through all of _that_ to ask you out on a _date_?" he asked, incredulously.

Her eyes narrowed. "What are you saying?"

He shrugged. "Seems like he's kind of a wimp to me. Why couldn't he just go to the gym and ask you?"

"I don't know…"

"Well, did you agree?"

"No…"

"Why? Was he a creep or something?"

"Not at all," she replied, shaking her head. "He seemed really nice and sweet."

Gary rolled his eyes. "Awww, how nice," he remarked sarcastically.

She glared at him. "Why do you care so much about my love life all of a sudden?"

"You mean your _lack_ of one?" he pointed out.

"Oh, please. You're on the same boat as I am, Gary Oak," Misty said pointedly. "Making fun of me would make _you_ a _hypocrite_."

"…Shut up." This was one of the times in which Gary regretted telling the red head so much about his life.

Misty smiled smugly. She knew that Gary had only been on a handful of dates, but none of them ever evolved into anything: he had never a girlfriend of any sort. He had said that he was just too focused on training his Pokémon and 'being the best' when he was younger to even seriously consider going out with anyone.

And now... well, it wasn't like there were a lot of young and attractive girls in the Pokémon researching field. Especially on an island in the middle of nowhere.

The only response that she could come up with when he had told her that was: _'Jeez. You can be as dense and stubborn as Ash, too.'_

That comment had obviously ticked Gary off. However, she _really_ wished that she could have taken a picture of his face after she told him that Ash had already been kissed by a couple of girls.

...And his face after she told him the story of Rudy (the leader of the Trovita Island gym) proposing to her was absolutely _priceless_.

"Why'd you say 'no'?" he asked, trying to divert the topic of conversation away from him.

"I… I don't know. Something was… holding me back or…"

"Is it Ash?" he cut in.

"Wh-What?" she stammered, almost falling off her chair.

"Oh, please. Everyone knows that you had some mega crush on him or whatever… Everyone but him, that is."

"Yeah, well the keyword here is 'had.' As in: _past_ tense."

"So you don't anymore?"

"No," she answered simply.

"As of when?"

She shrugged. "A couple of months ago, I guess…? I don't know when exactly."

"What brought that on?"

She sighed. "I got tired of waiting. There's no way that he'll focus on anything else but Pokémon anytime soon…"

"Well, you've got that right," he interjected. "I don't know why it took you so long to figure it out but… whatever. Someone as thick-headed as him isn't worth your time anyway."

Misty frowned. "He's still my friend, y'know. You don't have to talk about him like that."

"So what? He's my friend too. Besides, you know it's true. That kid is just _way_ too oblivious to everything."

"...I'm not going to say anything."

"Why? Because you know I'm right?" he said whilst smirking.

"You're impossible," she said, narrowing her eyes.

"As are you," he shot back.

Misty grit her teeth. She really wasn't in the mood to argue at the moment. Instead, she took another spoonful of her ice cream into her mouth.

"…What… are you eating?" Gary asked, pointing at the light green substance.

"Pistachio ice cream, of course."

"...Pistachio?"

She nodded.

"Hm. Never had it."

Misty froze and looked at him. _"What?"_

"What?"

"You've never had pistachio ice cream before?" she exclaimed, shocked.

"Uh, hello? Didn't I just say that? Are you deaf or something?"

She only rolled her eyes. "Well, you're missing out."

"Am I, now?"

"Yes. Pistachio is the most delicious ice cream flavor to ever be invented." She finished off the last of the cold treat before adding, "Ever."

"Says who?" he challenged.

"Says me, of course."

"And who made your opinion the supreme law of the land?"

"Me, duh."

"You're such a child."

"As are you," she said with a triumphant grin.

Gary rolled his eyes, but he couldn't help the smile that tugged at corner of his lips. "Uh… I think Togepi's falling asleep there," he said, looking over her shoulder.

Misty looked behind her and saw that the baby Pokémon was fighting to keep its eyes open. She carefully picked him up and set him on her lap.

"Aren't you tired too?" he asked her.

She shook her head. "Not anymore. I think it's from all of that sugar in the ice cream… I won't be surprised if I crash in a little while, though."

Togepi yawned and snuggled closer to Misty before falling asleep.

"The poor thing's been up the whole day."

He studied the Pokémon before asking, "Are you ever going to let him battle?"

"I… I don't know…"

"Y'know that he won't be a baby forever. You've had him for almost four years now; you're gonna have to train him sometime. Do you even know of its capabilities?"

"No…" she admitted sheepishly. "All I know is that he can use metronome, but other than that…"

"Hm. Well, if you want, I can help you train him when I visit you," he offered.

"Really? I guess that would be okay… Thanks."

"No problem."

"How are _your _Pokémon?" she asked after a few moments of comfortable silence.

"Lazy," he answered simply.

"What?"

"They really like the weather here. All they do is sit in the sun all day."

Misty laughed. "Who can blame 'em? I'd probably do the same."

"Yeah, I guess you're right… Might as well let them enjoy it while they can, eh?" Gary remarked, remembering that he would be going to Sinnoh soon.

"Yeah… It's cold up there, isn't it? Sinnoh, I mean…"

"Generally, yes. There are some parts in northern Sinnoh that are so cold, that it snows all of the time," Gary informed.

Misty made a face. "I hate the cold."

"I'm guessing that you won't be visiting me in Sinnoh then?" he teased.

She shrugged. "If you don't do anything to piss me off, then I'll consider it…," she said, sticking her tongue out. "But… Sinnoh isn't exactly right next door, though, y'know? I'd have to leave the gym for _at least_ a week, and I'm not so sure about leaving my sisters to take care of it for so long…"

Gary chuckled. "Yeah, I understand. It's alright. I forgot about that." He rubbed the back of his neck. "Whatever. I'll probably have more opportunities to sneak away than you, anyway… and I know that Grandpa will be expecting me to come home every now and then to update him on my findings."

"So... we'll still get see each other?" Misty asked, hopeful.

"Definitely. I would never deprive you of the pleasure of my company."

Misty sighed. Gary had certainly grown up since their travels through Kanto and Johto, but there were just some things that would never change.

* * *

**And there's Chapter 4! Woo~! Haha. It's a little short, but the next one will be longer, I promise.**

**Please review! The more reviews, the more motivation I'll get to update quicker. xD**

**Thanks for reading!**


	5. A Gift

**I am sosoSO sorry for the **_**very**_** late update! D: **

**I promise to try to update regularly… and I have summer vacation in about two months, so I should have a ton of time during that! **

**Anyway, the first four chapters have been revised (so a few details have been changed), so I would suggest re-reading them if you didn't already. I'm currently in the midst of re-writing the outline for the rest of this story (if you didn't see earlier, my old laptop that had all of my material crashed).**

* * *

**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN POKEMON.**

* * *

_**2 months later…**_

"I knew I'd find you here."

Misty looked up from her fishing activities and saw her young researcher friend with his umbreon. "When did you get here?" she asked, ignoring the very light tug from her line as the dark pokémon nuzzled against her hand, begging to be petted. Misty obliged and Umbreon purred in delight.

He shrugged and seated himself next to her on the riverbank. "…About a half-hour ago. I went to the gym and your sisters said you went out. The weather's really nice, so I figured you went fishing, and… well, here I am."

The two looked out at the water and settled into comfortable silence.

"So, uh… how've you been?" Gary asked. His gaze flickered to the girl next to him. Umbreon was still affectionately nuzzling its head against Misty's hand.

Misty glanced down at the empty space on her lap and then looked back up at her companion. "I'm fine. I've been… good, actually." She almost couldn't believe herself.

"Yeah?"

The gym leader nodded. "I'm fine, Gary. I promise."

"If you say so…"

She smiled at him, touched by his concern. "I miss him, of course, but… I know that he's doing bigger and better things now. You were right, I couldn't expect Togepi to stay a baby forever. I'm actually _really_ okay with it, though. I know that it's for the best."

Gary smiled back.

It had been approximately three weeks since Misty told him about Togepi and the Mirage Kingdom, and he could recall every detail of that conversation. She had just gotten to a Pokémon Center somewhere in the Hoenn region to rest after an eventful day with Ash and crew. She was in tears when she called, and Gary had never felt so helpless before.

However, to everyone's surprise, Misty had come to terms with it relatively quickly: she said it was probably because after seeing Ash and Brock say goodbye pokémon, she had a feeling that she would have to, as well… eventually.

She had told him numerous times on the phone that she was okay, but he hadn't been relieved until he heard her say it in person.

"Gary?" Her voice broke him out of his reverie.

"Yeah?"

"Why are you wearing your lab coat?"

The young researcher looked down. "Heh. I didn't even realize… I came straight here from my grandpa's lab: I had to help him with an experiment before I left." He shrugged the white garment off of his shoulders.

"Ah. I thought you were just trying to show off or something," she joked.

"There are other ways to show off; I don't need a lab coat to do it," he informed, making her laugh.

Misty focused back on her fishing after Umbreon moved and settled itself in between the two teenagers. "Anyway, how've _you_ been?" she asked. "How was your trip? How's the Professor? Tracey? Mrs. Ketchum? Your pokémon?"

The brunette was caught off guard by the influx of questions but collected himself pretty quickly. "I have been pretty good. My trip went without a hitch. And as for everyone in Pallet, they're all doing well and want you to visit again soon."

"I'd love that. Maybe—Oh! I've got one!" Misty announced when she felt a strong tug from her line. She began to reel in the catch, but she was yanked forward: were it not for Gary's fast reflexes, she would have ended up in the water. "This thing is strong," the red-head remarked right before the fish yanked the line again.

"What kind of damn super-fish is this?" exclaimed Gary; he was flabbergasted.

Under normal circumstances, Misty would have laughed at him. "I have no idea but—Ah!"

Gary stood behind her and tried to help her reel in the catch, but the pokémon forcefully yanked the line again and pulled the two teenagers into the water with a gigantic splash.

The duo resurfaced a few seconds later and looked over to where they were standing a few seconds ago and saw Umbreon laughing its head off.

They were startled when an abnormally large magikarp suddenly jumped out of the water, before it hastily swam away.

"What the—"

Gary was in utter disbelief. "There's no way a magikarp can be _that_ strong, even for its size," he said as they got out of the water. "Hey, maybe we can come back another time and try to catch it."

Misty shook her head. "I know you're a researcher and all, but... I think I'm good."

He only shrugged and took off his soaked shirt and shoes.

"At least the water isn't freezing," Misty said whilst removing her shirt, "if it were a month earlier, then we could've gotten hypothermia."

"Wh-what are you doing?" Gary stammered.

She looked at him disbelievingly. "Relax, Gary. I have a bathing suit on. I just don't want to walk back to the gym in wet clothes," she said as she proceeded to take off her shorts.

The brunette bashfully looked away and then noticed the fishing rod that was on the ground. He picked it up and examined it. "Looks like your rod didn't make it," he remarked, noticing the cracks in the wood. "We can go get it fixed—"

"Naah. It was just some old rod I found in the storage closet at the gym. No big deal," she responded. She gathered her belongings and stuffed them into her backpack.

"Here."

Misty looked up to see Gary handing over his lab coat, but he was still trying to avoid eye contact with her. She laughed.

"Just so you don't… get cold, and… whatever."

"Thanks." Misty graciously put it on. It was much too big, and she probably looked ridiculous in it, but she had to admit that it _was_ a better idea than walking the half-mile back to gym while wearing only a swimsuit.

Gary took the backpack from her and slung it over his shoulder. He raised an eyebrow when he noticed that Misty was looking at him. "What are you looking at?"

"You," she said, bluntly.

"...Why?"

"When did you get so… _toned_?" she asked, poking his stomach.

Gary gawked at her.

"What?" She looked at him questioningly.

"Since when did you become such a… a flirt?" he countered.

It was her turn to blush this time. "I think I've been spending too much time with my sisters…" she said, sheepishly. That, and the fact that she _was_ a teenage girl, after all: she was bound to notice a few things.

Gary chuckled. "I'll say... it's kinda cute, though." He wrapped his arm around her shoulders, an act that has proven to become easier every time he saw her: he was at least six inches taller than her now. "I say we go back and get changed, and then go out for an early dinner," he suggested, "and after that, I have something to give you."

"A present?" Her eyes lit up.

"Maybe…"

"Wait, why can't you just give it to me when we get back?"

"Because it'll be more fun this way—for me, at least—especially given how incredibly impatient you are."

"Gaaaryyy," she whined.

He laughed as they made their way back into town.

* * *

_**Later that evening...**_

After eating dinner at Misty's favorite café, and the two decided to go out for ice cream. Misty had practically forced Gary to try the pistachio flavor. The idea of it certainly wasn't very appealing to him, but he had to admit: it was _really_ good.

"So… about that present…" Misty started as they walked through the glass doors of the gym.

"I _knew_ you wouldn't drop it that easily."

"Duh."

He sighed. "I _guess _I can give it to you now…"

"Yay!" She practically dragged the young researcher upstairs to the living quarters of the building.

The two were greeted by the two oldest Waterflower sisters who were lounging in the living room.

"How was dinner, you two?" Daisy inquired, looking up from her magazine. She quirked an eyebrow at Misty, seeming to be expecting something.

"Um… good, I guess?" Misty responded uneasily, making the older girl sigh. "Where's Lily?" she inquired, oblivious to Daisy's reaction.

"Oh, she's out getting a movie for us to watch tonight," Violet responded as she painted her fingernails. "Do you guys want to join?"

Gary and Misty looked at each other and shrugged.

"Sure."

"We'll be in the guest room. Just call us when she gets back—WHAT DID YOU GUYS DO?" Misty exclaimed. It was only then that she noticed the mess in the kitchen.

Actually, the word "mess" was an understatement: it looked like a casserole had exploded.

"We tried to cook," Daisy started.

"...but it didn't really work out," Violet finished.

"We wound up calling for take-out."

"Butit's—How did you even manage to—"

"We'll clean it up later, sis. Chill out."

"Yeah. Just go and we'll let you know when Lily gets back."

"Who knows? Maybe the kitchen will be clean by then."

Misty sighed in defeat before being ushered away by Gary.

Violet and Daisy watched the pair leave the room.

"They're like, _so_ cute," Daisy gushed. "Almost _too_ cute."

"I know, right?" Violet commented.

"And no offense, but he's like, _way_ cuter than that Ash kid that Misty used to hang out with," Daisy pointed out.

Violet nodded. "Too bad he's just as dense."

"She seems a lot happier than before."

"Yeah. I didn't think that she'd like, ever be able to get over Togepi."

"That, and well, I mean that she seems happier in general," Daisy added.

Violet couldn't disagree with that statement.

* * *

Gary and Misty had retreated in the guest bedroom that the former was now very familiar with. Misty patiently sat on the bed while Gary dug around his backpack for something. After a few moments, he turned to face the gym leader, and in his hands was—

"_A pokémon egg_?" Misty stuttered. "What—N-no, I can't—I—"

"Misty, please, _take_ it."

"You've already done so much for me, Gary. I—Where did you even get that?" Her mind was reeling.

"I got it from Jared and Dora about a month ago."

"If they gave it to _you_, then it's _yours_."

"They gave it to me because they knew that I would do whatever is best for it. I was planning on giving it to you from the beginning… even before the whole, uh… Togepi incident…"

"I... Do you know what it is?" she asked, her curiosity getting the better of her.

Gary shook his head. "Not a clue. They just told me was that I'd definitely like it… so that means that you would probably like it, too."

"But what if it's a spinarak? Or weedle?"

Gary chuckled. "I'm sure that it isn't a bug pokémon, Misty."

"How do you know?"

"Well, I don't think they would be very enthusiastic about giving me a _bug_ pokémon egg… I mean, all pokémon are great, but—"

"Yeah, I get it." He had a point, she had to admit.

"…It's due to hatch any day now," Gary continued, "but I'm too busy to take care of a baby pokémon… and I couldn't think of anyone more suited to raise it, so—" Gary's rambling was interrupted when the gym leader tackled him in a hug (while still being mindful of the egg, of course).

"Th-thank you so much, Gary," Misty said as she pulled away. She gave him a very chaste kiss on the cheek. "I have to go tell my sisters!" she exclaimed as she practically ran out of the room.

* * *

_**The next morning...**_

Just a few days ago, Gary had thought that his week in Cerulean would consist of nothing but relaxation and spending quality time with Misty.

He never envisioned trying to help her teach Psyduck how to swim.

After hearing the many, _many_ stories that Misty had about her rather interesting pokémon, the researcher was not at all keen about the idea. However, after an hour of begging, and giving him the saddest puppy-dog eyes that she was capable of, Misty was able to win him over… yet _again_.

He was beginning to regret befriending the water-pokémon trainer.

…Only not really.

He had no idea how or why, but she had the ability to make him do whatever she wanted: if she told him to jump off of a bridge, he wouldn't be surprised if she found a way to make him construct said bridge _himself_.

"Come on, Psyduck. Don't you want to swim like the others?" Gary said exasperatedly. He had spent the last half-hour trying to convince the duck pokémon to let go of the edge of the pool.

Psyduck responded by shaking its head.

At this point, even Blastoise, Corsola and Politoed had swam over to help persuade the duck to listen to Gary and Misty.

"I just don't understand why he can't swim," Misty said with a frown.

"…Maybe it's psychological?" Gary suggested.

"What do you mean?"

"Maybe Psyduck had some sort of frightening experience in the water when it was younger."

"But… he's a _water_ pokémon, Gary. Wouldn't it have had to be _in_ the water to have had a bad experience with it?"

"Hm… you may have a point."

Misty sighed. "I really appreciate your help, Gary, but I guess there isn't much we can do right now…"

"Yeah, but I really wish I knew a way…"

"I've been wishing for that for almost four years."

They grudgingly gave Psyduck's water-wings back so that it could mingle with the other pokémon.

"So he refuses to let anyone teach him how to swim in a kiddie pool, but doesn't mind using floaties and inner tubes in water that's 30 feet deep," he said incredulously.

"Yep. I've sent Psyduck to your grandfather a few times to get studied, but even _he_ couldn't figure him out."

"So it seems that he will forever remain a mystery."

Misty thought for a moment before responding. "Hey, maybe _you_ will be able to… sometime in the future," she said encouragingly.

"Yeah, maybe."

* * *

_**Five days later…**_

"Well, Red, it's been fun," Gary said as he slung his new backpack over his shoulder. Misty had gotten it for him the other day to thank him for everything.

_"I'm sure it'll be put to good use in Sinnoh," _she had said, _"You'll be doing a lot of traveling up there, after all."_

The two were standing outside of the gym doors, saying their farewells.

"Are you sure you don't want me to walk you to the docks?" Misty asked.

"What am I? Four?" he said sarcastically. "I'll be fine."

"Alright, alright… When will you be back in Kanto?"

"No idea," he responded, "Probably not for a few months…"

"Oh." As much as she hated to admit it, Misty still had a hard time saying goodbyes.

"Lighten up, Mist. It's not like I'm going away forever."

"I know, but I—"

"I'll come back and visit as soon as I can."

"Okay, just—"

"I'll make sure to travel safely," he continued, "I won't do anything stupid. I promise I'll call you as soon as I get to the lab, and I wrote down all of my new contact information and left it on your desk in your room, so you have full liberty to bite my head off if I don't. Did I forget anything?"

Misty chuckled. "No, no. You're good."

"Then, I better get going if I want to catch the 10:30 trip. The next one isn't for another 3 hours, and it takes almost twice as long because of the transfer: so I wouldn't get there until tomorrow night."

"Okay. Bye, Gary."

"See ya 'round."

"MISTY! GARY!" Lily yelled as she ran outside.

"What is it, Lily?" Misty inquired.

"The egg! It's like, _hatching_!" she said in a hurry before running back into the building.

Gary and Misty glanced at each other before following the pink-haired Sensational Sister upstairs.

Daisy and Violet were watching the egg, which was situated on a cushion on the couch. Misty and Gary knelt in front of it as a crack formed at the top. The crack quickly spread, and within a few seconds, the shell broke and from it emerged a small, four-legged creature. It was brown and furry and had large black eyes.

"Vee?"

Everyone's jaw dropped. "An _eevee_?" they all exclaimed.

The furry brown pokémon nuzzled against the gym leader and researcher. Misty picked up the eevee and affectionately petted its head.

"IT'S SO ADORABLE!" Daisy, Violet and Lily squealed, startling the baby pokémon.

"Guys! Don't scare it!" the youngest Waterflower sister scolded.

"Whoops."

"Sorry, Mist."

"Hey, Eevee," Misty greeted. "I'm Misty, and I'm going to be your trainer, if that's okay."

"Vee! Vee! Eevee!" he cried, very happy with the red-head. He then looked at the young professor next to her questioningly.

"Oh, this is Gary. He's a good friend of ours."

"Hey, there," Gary greeted, scratching behind its ear. The eevee licked its hand.

"And these are my sisters: Daisy, Violet and Lily," Misty continued as the three older sisters pet the young pokémon.

"Umbreon's gotta see this," Gary said before taking out a pokéball releasing his companion.

"Umbree?" It looked up at its trainer questioningly.

"Hey, Umbreon. We've got a new friend here that I think you'd love to meet."

The dark-type pokémon's face immediately lit up upon seeing the eevee in Misty's arms. The eevee freed itself from Misty's hold and approached his evolved form.

"THEY'RE SO CUTE!" the three older sisters exclaimed.

Umbreon playfully nipped his ear before scurrying to the other side of the room, and the baby pokémon ran after her.

"Looks like they're getting along already," Misty observed.

"Yeah. I guess I won't be leaving until later, after all," Gary said with a chuckle as Umbreon and Eevee continued to happily chase each other around the living room.

"Gary?"

He looked down at his companion and saw a dazzling smile adorn her lips. "Yeah?"

She hesitated a moment before hugging him. "Thank you."

After overcoming the initial shock, he wrapped his arms around her small figure, reciprocating her embrace. "You're welcome," he said with a sincere smile.

* * *

**Sorry that it's kind of short, but they will get better. I promise. **

**I'll be incorporating more of the characters (i.e., Ash, Brock, etc.) in the next chapter, or the one after that. In regards to the events in the actual anime: I'll be taking more artistic liberties with the plot soon, as well. I've been on a writing kick the past few days, so get excited for the rest of the story! As of now, it looks like this will be a 12 chapter story, but we'll see. ;)**

**Once again, I apologize for the delayed update! I'm aiming to get the next chapter out in a week or two, depending on my exam schedule. **

**I just want to make it clear that THIS STORY WILL BE FINISHED. I have two _full_ notebooks of ideas that I am planning to include in this story. I have tons of ideas for one-shots and short-fics as well.**

**In the meantime: I would like to thank all of you for your support to continue this story. It is thoroughly appreciated. **

**I'm so glad that there are so many other people out there who support egoshipping as much as I do. Haha. **

**Reviews/praise/constructive criticism is more than welcome!**


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